FSO - Bright and colourful

Yesterday I saw a garden of bright yellow poppies in the middle of a roundabout and told myself I'd go back later to get a few shots.  But between then and 'later' I lost (and found) my bankcard and subsequently lost all memory of the poppies.

My favourite bright thing at the moment is the winter sun.  Four frosty mornings and four bright sunny days this week.

 Sun gets in your eyes

 Changing rooms

 Wearable art

 Childrens' room at the library

Bright sun lightens a gloomy corner

Jama always has bright and colourful images from Singapore.  I bet she has something spectacular to show today!  I will find out what colourful treasures she and the rest of the team have found here.

FSO - Made by Hand

The topic this week is Made by Hand.  I'd been thinking (in an idle fashion because this topic just did not grip me) about where I might find something hand made before I read the hints we are provided with each week.  Too late, I'd already gone down the dress maker path.  Wearable art always catch my eye.  My grand-daughters enter the Wearable Arts contest at their school each year but I can't imagine them putting in the time necessary to construct this, which is made from bread bag clips.  The bottom featured the bread bags themselves and the necklace was made of little pieces of toasted bread. 

This was produced by a student in Diploma in Fashion Design at NorthTec.

Back home at my place the constructions are a bit more simple.  But give a child an old box and some cellotope, pencils and paper, sit her in front of the heater on a cold day when she feels a bit off colour and those little hands will construct something.

Last Christmas the grand-daughters were allowed to decorate the cup cakes.That might sound like a strange Christmas Day activity but they loved it.  And it's never too early for them to learn that many hands make light work. 

My daughter keeps her hands busy producing this:

I've posted this before - a tiny hand made bead - but every time I look at it I marvel at the patience involved.

After Māori arrived in New Zealand, around 1250, they discovered the useful properties of flax. The nectar from its flowers made a sweet drink. The roots could be crushed to make poultices for skin infections, and to produce a juice with disinfectant and laxative properties. The gum from the base of the leaves eased pain and healed wounds, especially burns. The leaves themselves could be used as bandages and to secure broken bones.

Maori women learned to obtain the strong fibre from the leaves by scraping the green flesh away with a sharp shell. This fibre was pounded until soft, then washed and sometimes dyed. Twisted, plaited and woven, it was used to create a wide range of items, such as fishing nets and traps, footwear, ropes and, when woven with feathers, clothing.

Then, as now, only the outer leaves - the grandparents - were harvested to avoid weakening the plant.  So there are still plenty of flax plants around to allow following generations to use the plant in various ways.

I'm looking forward to checking out the rest of the FSO team here.  Pop over and have a look - or why not join us?